GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

Thanks,

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Ryk,

I have same problem, except worse - I need reading glasses at home computer
and I can't read my iPaq display - I use the iPaq along with Fugawi as a
chart display - It has a zoom function that helps, but I am still juggling
sunglasses and reading glasses just at the worst moments.

What I am considering and will order tonight, seeing you jogged my memory,
is one of these:

http://www.gpscity.ca/item-ram-mount...er/rammag1.htm

We will see if it helps!

There are larger screen portable - Ultra-Mobiles. Need to wait for price to
come down!

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.... P=rdr0000276

Good Luck!


"Ryk" wrote in message
...

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

Thanks,

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

"
"Ryk" wrote in message
.. .

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.

I'm way past you in that I have been wearing bifocals since I was in
my mid 40s. My oldest daughter (now 45) is having to wear reading
glasses. My husband who is almost 70 just wears reading glasses. His
problem with them is losing the glasses and case out of his pocket
into the water. Now he has buttoned or zipped pockets to put them in.

I have not heard that he had any problem reading the computer screen
(which is a regular laptop, but we are running Cap'n) at the helm,
although he makes me zoom in somewhat more than I would do if it were
up to me. He can't read the GPS through his sunglasses anyway
because they are polarized.

Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

I put those scrunchy things (can't remember what they are called) on
the legs of my glasses so they don't blow off my face and into the
water. I've done that ever since someone on the dock threw me a rope
(which I didn't need thrown) and it hit me on the nose and knocked my
prescription glasses into Nassau harbour. After I screamed at Bob
that we weren't leaving after all and got my backup glasses and the
current died down a bit, we retrieved them with the pool net. The
water was clear and the glasses had lenses that darkened in bright
light, so we could see where they were.

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

We have an enclosed cockpit, and have all the lines led back there so
all the sail handling can be done without going on deck, unless we are
anchoring or coming into a dock or something. In that case, we are
just trying to avoid bumping into large objects that Bob can see
without reading glasses. If anchoring, I'm driving and he's directing
from the bow.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

"Ryk" wrote in message
.. .

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.


About 6 or 7 years ago I was watching TV and ran across a show (maybe on
the History Channel ?) that described in part how the Army before the
start of W.W.II was woefully short on qualified candidates for flight
training. One reason for the shortage was due to a large number of
otherwise qualified potential candidates having poor eyesight, so the
Army hired a bunch of opthamologists to train the candidates to regain
good eyesight from refractive errors like myopia and presbyopia. They
showed films from the period where they were using all sorts of strange
machines to retrain the eyes. Some time after seeing that show I read a
description of the eye exercises for retraining refractive errors that
the Army opthamologists gave their candidates. Now I see a number of
*new* training systems for vision improvement for sale like the "See
Clearly Method" and others that base their methods on the original
Army/opthamologist methods, or the Bates method, or a combination of the
two. The Army method has been successful for a lot of people, and the
Bates system has also been successful for a lot of people. Some need
one, others need the other. Still other people may need a combo of the
two to be effective.
Bottom line is, if you are willing to spend the time and effort, you
can get a lot of correction. If though like me most of your refractive
error is from astigmatisms, be prepared to spend some serious work to
correct it. I started using the original Army methods when I first saw
them and stopped cold the progression of worsening, (which up till that
time meant about 1/4 diopter per year worsening on average) and have
since improved one whole diopter. If I had dedicated enough time and
energy to it I believe I would have improved my eyesight a lot more. I
hate wearing glasses so the time I spent working on my eyes has enabled
me to see good enough again to read without them. BTW, if you have
become farsighted, you will get pretty rapid improvement using the Army
methods - that seems to be by far the easiest to correct.
But thanks for reminding me. Passing the CG OUPV test means having
no more than 20/200 uncorrected, so now I'm going to dust off that
document and get back to working on my vision.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Sailaway wrote:

It has just occurred to me that you could have lasiks done on just one
eye. That way you could read with one eye and see distance with the
other. Sailors that we know where she had always worn contacts, she
got that done, and doesn't have to wear glasses at all now.

"Ryk" wrote in message
.. .

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.


About 6 or 7 years ago I was watching TV and ran across a show (maybe on
the History Channel ?) that described in part how the Army before the
start of W.W.II was woefully short on qualified candidates for flight
training. One reason for the shortage was due to a large number of
otherwise qualified potential candidates having poor eyesight, so the
Army hired a bunch of opthamologists to train the candidates to regain
good eyesight from refractive errors like myopia and presbyopia. They
showed films from the period where they were using all sorts of strange
machines to retrain the eyes. Some time after seeing that show I read a
description of the eye exercises for retraining refractive errors that
the Army opthamologists gave their candidates. Now I see a number of
*new* training systems for vision improvement for sale like the "See
Clearly Method" and others that base their methods on the original
Army/opthamologist methods, or the Bates method, or a combination of the
two. The Army method has been successful for a lot of people, and the
Bates system has also been successful for a lot of people. Some need
one, others need the other. Still other people may need a combo of the
two to be effective.
Bottom line is, if you are willing to spend the time and effort, you
can get a lot of correction. If though like me most of your refractive
error is from astigmatisms, be prepared to spend some serious work to
correct it. I started using the original Army methods when I first saw
them and stopped cold the progression of worsening, (which up till that
time meant about 1/4 diopter per year worsening on average) and have
since improved one whole diopter. If I had dedicated enough time and
energy to it I believe I would have improved my eyesight a lot more. I
hate wearing glasses so the time I spent working on my eyes has enabled
me to see good enough again to read without them. BTW, if you have
become farsighted, you will get pretty rapid improvement using the Army
methods - that seems to be by far the easiest to correct.
But thanks for reminding me. Passing the CG OUPV test means having
no more than 20/200 uncorrected, so now I'm going to dust off that
document and get back to working on my vision.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B. wrote:
"
"Ryk" wrote in message
...

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to
the PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard
to read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can
still read the phone book, but only in good light and probably
getting a little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in
bed and nothing at the computer screen.

I'm way past you in that I have been wearing bifocals since I was in
my mid 40s. My oldest daughter (now 45) is having to wear reading
glasses. My husband who is almost 70 just wears reading glasses. His
problem with them is losing the glasses and case out of his pocket
into the water. Now he has buttoned or zipped pockets to put them in.

I have not heard that he had any problem reading the computer screen
(which is a regular laptop, but we are running Cap'n) at the helm,
although he makes me zoom in somewhat more than I would do if it were
up to me. He can't read the GPS through his sunglasses anyway
because they are polarized.

Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

I put those scrunchy things (can't remember what they are called) on
the legs of my glasses so they don't blow off my face and into the
water. I've done that ever since someone on the dock threw me a rope
(which I didn't need thrown) and it hit me on the nose and knocked my
prescription glasses into Nassau harbour. After I screamed at Bob
that we weren't leaving after all and got my backup glasses and the
current died down a bit, we retrieved them with the pool net. The
water was clear and the glasses had lenses that darkened in bright
light, so we could see where they were.

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display.
How much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big
screen? Or should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which
might not help the rain issue)

We have an enclosed cockpit, and have all the lines led back there so
all the sail handling can be done without going on deck, unless we are
anchoring or coming into a dock or something. In that case, we are
just trying to avoid bumping into large objects that Bob can see
without reading glasses. If anchoring, I'm driving and he's directing
from the bow.

This seems to be the best, (and cheapest) solution. Get yourself a blonde
nympho who has younger eyes than yours (no disrespect to Rosalie!). It may
cost you more than a big screen in the long run, but will last longer, and
keep you looking younger!

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Mon, 14 Aug 2006 19:27:00 -0400, Ryk
wrote:

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

If you have space and the budget, the Furuno 10.4 inch color screens
are outstanding for both daytime and night time visibility. Next best
are their 7 inch screens.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

There is nothing wrong with wearing bifocal glass. It is a natural aging
process. Most LCD are hard to read in direct sun light. Beside
navigational equipment digital cameras are the worst to read in direct sun
light.
In my case I have my eyes examined every two years and I wear bifocal all
the time. On board I have two pair of prescription polarized sun glass made
for distance viewing. These are used most of the time and especially to
have a visual on distant objects on the water. I also have pairs of tinted
prescription bi-focal eyes glass that I use for outside charts and
instrument reading.
For on the water visual with the sun reflecting tinted eye glass are not as
good as polarized. In Canada the polarized bi-focal are just too expensive.
How come I have two pairs of each? As I get new prescription eye glass
every two years I keep the old one as spare. I have been know to sat on my
glass, misplaced them or the grand children to inadvertently throw them
overboard.
Now the navigational instruments manufacturers are coming with anti - glare
LC display and they are much easier to read and to keep a visual on the
screens.

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 14 Aug 2006 19:27:00 -0400, Ryk
wrote:

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

If you have space and the budget, the Furuno 10.4 inch color screens
are outstanding for both daytime and night time visibility. Next best
are their 7 inch screens.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B. wrote:
"

"Ryk" wrote in message
. ..

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.


I'm way past you in that I have been wearing bifocals since I was in
my mid 40s. My oldest daughter (now 45) is having to wear reading
glasses. My husband who is almost 70 just wears reading glasses. His
problem with them is losing the glasses and case out of his pocket
into the water. Now he has buttoned or zipped pockets to put them in.

I have not heard that he had any problem reading the computer screen
(which is a regular laptop, but we are running Cap'n) at the helm,
although he makes me zoom in somewhat more than I would do if it were
up to me. He can't read the GPS through his sunglasses anyway
because they are polarized.

Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

I put those scrunchy things (can't remember what they are called) on
the legs of my glasses so they don't blow off my face and into the
water. I've done that ever since someone on the dock threw me a rope
(which I didn't need thrown) and it hit me on the nose and knocked my
prescription glasses into Nassau harbour. After I screamed at Bob
that we weren't leaving after all and got my backup glasses and the
current died down a bit, we retrieved them with the pool net. The
water was clear and the glasses had lenses that darkened in bright
light, so we could see where they were.


I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)


We have an enclosed cockpit, and have all the lines led back there so
all the sail handling can be done without going on deck, unless we are
anchoring or coming into a dock or something. In that case, we are
just trying to avoid bumping into large objects that Bob can see
without reading glasses. If anchoring, I'm driving and he's directing
from the bow.



My optometrist said the mid-forties was the magic time when many people
start needing reading glasses.If you were near sighted before, you now
need bi-folds or most likely progressive lenses (especially if your job
is in front of a computer)
The good news is... there are some nice looking eyeglasses out there.I
have almost a 'wire rim' style titanium frame.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

"Dennis Pogson" wrote

This seems to be the best, (and cheapest) solution. Get yourself a blonde
nympho who has younger eyes than yours (no disrespect to Rosalie!).

If she has good eyes, it might be hard to get her interested :)

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B. wrote:

"Ryk" wrote in message
. ..

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to the
PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

These are camera shots of the computer screen with anchorages where
the boat track has been marked green
http://p.vtourist.com/953705-Chart_o...ille_Beach.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/1295370-chart_...ed-Footman.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/952031-Chart_o...-Reedville.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/953094-Chart_s...Deltaville.jpg

This one shows our track to a marina
http://p.vtourist.com/953621-ICW_cha...k-Oriental.jpg
And to a new marina that isn't on the charts.
http://p.vtourist.com/953149-Chart_s...-Hampstead.jpg

I can't find any shots of the blue route lines, but these are older
tracks from a previous version and are in red - the first one of our
home marina
http://p.vtourist.com/951996-Chart_o...reek-Ridge.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/2071745-Chart_...elby_Beach.jpg
(We went in to get fuel and had to wait off the dock for someone else
to finish)

And this one has both the anchorage and the marina
http://p.vtourist.com/1295474-Chart_...ort_Pierce.jpg

(I put the marina and anchorages marks on the charts)

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination of
small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it hard to
read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where I can still
read the phone book, but only in good light and probably getting a
little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to read in bed and
nothing at the computer screen.
snip
Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B. wrote:
Rosalie B. wrote:

"Ryk" wrote in message
...

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to
the PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

These are camera shots of the computer screen with anchorages where
the boat track has been marked green

http://p.vtourist.com/953705-Chart_o...htsville_Beach.
jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/1295370-chart_...ed-Footman.jpg

http://p.vtourist.com/952031-Chart_o...k-Reedville.jp
g

http://p.vtourist.com/953094-Chart_s...Deltaville.jpg

This one shows our track to a marina

http://p.vtourist.com/953621-ICW_cha...Creek-Oriental
..jpg
And to a new marina that isn't on the charts.
http://p.vtourist.com/953149-Chart_s...-Hampstead.jpg

I can't find any shots of the blue route lines, but these are older
tracks from a previous version and are in red - the first one of our
home marina
http://p.vtourist.com/951996-Chart_o...reek-Ridge.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/2071745-Chart_...elby_Beach.jpg
(We went in to get fuel and had to wait off the dock for someone else
to finish)

And this one has both the anchorage and the marina
http://p.vtourist.com/1295474-Chart_...ort_Pierce.jpg

(I put the marina and anchorages marks on the charts)

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination
of small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it
hard to read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where
I can still read the phone book, but only in good light and
probably getting a little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to
read in bed and nothing at the computer screen.
snip
Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

Your husband is a very lucky man. Most of our wives/girlfriends don't know
how to switch on a laptop, let alone use it for navigation!

Dennis.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

"Dennis Pogson" wrote:

Rosalie B. wrote:
Rosalie B. wrote:

"Ryk" wrote in message
...

I've got a Garmin GPS76 at the helm that provides all the
functionality I really need, backed up with a direct connection to
the PC running Fugawi at the nav station.

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

These are camera shots of the computer screen with anchorages where
the boat track has been marked green

http://p.vtourist.com/953705-Chart_o...htsville_Beach.
jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/1295370-chart_...ed-Footman.jpg

http://p.vtourist.com/952031-Chart_o...k-Reedville.jp
g

http://p.vtourist.com/953094-Chart_s...Deltaville.jpg

This one shows our track to a marina

http://p.vtourist.com/953621-ICW_cha...k-Oriental.jpg
And to a new marina that isn't on the charts.
http://p.vtourist.com/953149-Chart_s...-Hampstead.jpg

I can't find any shots of the blue route lines, but these are older
tracks from a previous version and are in red - the first one of our
home marina
http://p.vtourist.com/951996-Chart_o...reek-Ridge.jpg
http://p.vtourist.com/2071745-Chart_...elby_Beach.jpg
(We went in to get fuel and had to wait off the dock for someone else
to finish)

And this one has both the anchorage and the marina
http://p.vtourist.com/1295474-Chart_...ort_Pierce.jpg

(I put the marina and anchorages marks on the charts)

Unfortunately, I no longer have teenaged eyes and the combination
of small size, lack of contrast, rain, darkness, etc. can make it
hard to read at the most important moments. I'm at the point where
I can still read the phone book, but only in good light and
probably getting a little worse. I wear 1.75 dime store glasses to
read in bed and nothing at the computer screen.
snip
Basically his solution is to leave the reading to me. I do the
charting and waypoints and radio work and all that stuff. I read the
GPS and record what it says.

Your husband is a very lucky man. Most of our wives/girlfriends don't know
how to switch on a laptop, let alone use it for navigation!

Dennis.

I'll tell him you said that. He only uses an old CPM computer, so I
do all the computing on the internet. He just comes and tells me what
information he wants.

Actually, he doesn't use the phone much either. My son called today
and wanted to know his sister's phone number, and he didn't know it,
and I had the cell phone (with the number programmed in) and also my
address book with me. And my son didn't think of calling his OTHER
sister who would have had that information, so they had to wait until
I got home and could tell him what it was.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B asked why would anyone want to exercise their eyes to get
better vision when there was Lasik.

To answer that completely would take a few pages, but I'll give you a
few reasons.

1) Not everyone is a candidate for Lasik.
2) Not everyone is wealthy and can afford to waste thousands on
something they can accomplish on their own with a little effort.
3) Not everyone gets good results from Lasik.
4) There are several beneficial side effects to using eye exercise that
you will never get from Lasik, including reduced risk of several eye
maladies and diseases normally associated with 'aging'.
5) Lasik can result in worse vision in some people - it is always a crap
shoot since there is no way to tell beforehand who will have a severe
problem. The risk is lower than with earlier procedures, but it still
happens, and is no less severe when it does. A friend of my GF had Lasik
and is now nearly blind in one eye from over-compensation.

I know several people who have had Lasik and went from near sightedness
to having that corrected, but now have developed farsightedness from the
procedure, which is apparently common. A licensed Captain I worked with
this year had that happen to him. So he went from needing glasses for
far vision, to needing glasses for seeing whats in the boat.

And maybe its just me, but I just don't get this whole thing about
rushing out to have some guy cut parts off your body. Frankly even the
thought of that is scary. I would much rather exert a little effort to
correct something wrong with me, than have some MD (esp. after enough
years of hearing from them how little they understand how the human body
works- even the AMA admits that only 15% of what MD's do is based in
science, not to mention the frequent mistakes they seem to make) start
carving parts off me. But, to each his own.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Sailaway wrote:

Rosalie B asked why would anyone want to exercise their eyes to get
better vision when there was Lasik.

I DID NOT SAY THAT. I just mentioned that Lasik was another
possibility. I didn't recommend it - just mentioned it. I do know a
sailor who has had it done (not me) and she likes it very well. I
did not express any opinion whatever on eye exercises.

To answer that completely would take a few pages, but I'll give you a
few reasons.

1) Not everyone is a candidate for Lasik.
2) Not everyone is wealthy and can afford to waste thousands on
something they can accomplish on their own with a little effort.
3) Not everyone gets good results from Lasik.
4) There are several beneficial side effects to using eye exercise that
you will never get from Lasik, including reduced risk of several eye
maladies and diseases normally associated with 'aging'.
5) Lasik can result in worse vision in some people - it is always a crap
shoot since there is no way to tell beforehand who will have a severe
problem. The risk is lower than with earlier procedures, but it still
happens, and is no less severe when it does. A friend of my GF had Lasik
and is now nearly blind in one eye from over-compensation.

I know several people who have had Lasik and went from near sightedness
to having that corrected, but now have developed farsightedness from the
procedure, which is apparently common. A licensed Captain I worked with
this year had that happen to him. So he went from needing glasses for
far vision, to needing glasses for seeing whats in the boat.

And maybe its just me, but I just don't get this whole thing about
rushing out to have some guy cut parts off your body. Frankly even the
thought of that is scary. I would much rather exert a little effort to
correct something wrong with me, than have some MD (esp. after enough
years of hearing from them how little they understand how the human body
works- even the AMA admits that only 15% of what MD's do is based in
science, not to mention the frequent mistakes they seem to make) start
carving parts off me. But, to each his own.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B wrote:
I DID NOT SAY THAT. I just mentioned that Lasik was another
possibility.

Sorry if there was any misunderstanding Rosalie, I lost that post I was
referring to and was relying on memory for the gist of it.

What I was inferring, or at least what I intended to infer, wasn't that
you were against anything or for anything else (the reply wasn't about
you), just that I seemed to remember you had brought it up in a way that
asked something like why do that when there is Lasik. And I do agree
that most people are happy with the surgery, esp. compared to what they
have been going through with glasses or contacts. I just wanted people
to know that there are important reasons to use it vs. Lasik so they
would know there was a choice other than what their
optomotrists/opthamologists were telling them and a choice other than
voluntarily having body parts cut off. I have to admit that there are
some subjects that get my shorts in a knot (and I'd guess it affects how
I write) - one being medical advice/proceedures vs. patients actually
doing something proactive to heal or avoid disease in the first place.
That takes education and effort and unfortunately only a relatively few
are interested so we have our present idiotic medical boondoggle and
associated costs instead of a healthy and self-sufficient population.
rant off

So my answer was only intended as education, not intended at all to be
about you, and not intended as any kind of slight whatsoever.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Sailaway wrote:

Rosalie B wrote:
I DID NOT SAY THAT. I just mentioned that Lasik was another
possibility.

Sorry if there was any misunderstanding Rosalie, I lost that post I was
referring to and was relying on memory for the gist of it.

What I was inferring, or at least what I intended to infer, wasn't that
you were against anything or for anything else (the reply wasn't about
you), just that I seemed to remember you had brought it up in a way that
asked something like why do that when there is Lasik.

Well it did seem as if you were setting me up in order to make fun of
me - your original post said

Rosalie B asked why would anyone want to exercise their eyes to get
better vision when there was Lasik.

I think you could have given the reasons against it without bringing
me into it at all. Because what I actually wrote was

"It has just occurred to me that you [meaning the OP whose post was
immediately below mine] could have lasiks done on just one eye. That
way you could read with one eye and see distance with the other.
Sailors that we know where she had always worn contacts, she got that
done, and doesn't have to wear glasses at all now."

I left the stuff about the eye exercises in at the bottom of the post
(I top posted after the original post) because I thought it was
valuable information which could stand to be repeated. It wasn't a
disparagement - quite the opposite. I suppose I could have cut it all
out and then there wouldn't have been a misunderstanding that I was
contrasting two different methods of treatment.

I know that eye exercises can help in some instances..

And I do agree
that most people are happy with the surgery, esp. compared to what they
have been going through with glasses or contacts. I just wanted people
to know that there are important reasons to use it vs. Lasik so they
would know there was a choice other than what their
optomotrists/opthamologists were telling them and a choice other than
voluntarily having body parts cut off. I have to admit that there are
some subjects that get my shorts in a knot (and I'd guess it affects how
I write) - one being medical advice/proceedures vs. patients actually
doing something proactive to heal or avoid disease in the first place.
That takes education and effort and unfortunately only a relatively few
are interested so we have our present idiotic medical boondoggle and
associated costs instead of a healthy and self-sufficient population.
rant off

I was in the gym the other day and I was explaining to the trainers
that I wanted to increase my flexibility, but that I do have some
joint problems, and they wanted to know why I didn't just get a knee
and hip replacement. I've had enough surgery Thank You Very Much.


So my answer was only intended as education, not intended at all to be
about you, and not intended as any kind of slight whatsoever.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Rosalie B. wrote:
Snip
I was in the gym the other day and I was explaining to the trainers
that I wanted to increase my flexibility, but that I do have some
joint problems, and they wanted to know why I didn't just get a knee
and hip replacement. I've had enough surgery Thank You Very Much.

Have these morons actually SEEN a knee or hip replacement? It's a wonder
that it all goes back together! The noise when they dislocate the jount is
enough to make anyone sick. I thought hacksaws were for cutting metal.10
years ago my MD told me My knees were "not bad enough to operate on". Now he
tells me I'm getting too old to benefit from the operation. Keep taking the
glucosamine!

I do however find that eye drops of the over-the-counter kind are
definiitely beneficial. Used sparingly and not every day, they keep the eyes
from becoming inflamed. My $5 reading glasses are all I need, despite the
protestations of my optician!

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

"Dennis Pogson" wrote:

Rosalie B. wrote:
Snip
I was in the gym the other day and I was explaining to the trainers
that I wanted to increase my flexibility, but that I do have some
joint problems, and they wanted to know why I didn't just get a knee
and hip replacement. I've had enough surgery Thank You Very Much.

Have these morons actually SEEN a knee or hip replacement? It's a wonder
that it all goes back together! The noise when they dislocate the jount is
enough to make anyone sick. I thought hacksaws were for cutting metal.10
years ago my MD told me My knees were "not bad enough to operate on". Now he
tells me I'm getting too old to benefit from the operation. Keep taking the
glucosamine!

I took that for many years, and when I stopped I didn't notice any
difference, so I've quit taking it. It doesn't benefit everyone.

I do however find that eye drops of the over-the-counter kind are
definiitely beneficial. Used sparingly and not every day, they keep the eyes
from becoming inflamed. My $5 reading glasses are all I need, despite the
protestations of my optician!

I need glasses for both distance and close-up, so reading glasses
wouldn't work for me. That's what Bob uses though.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 09:54:41 -0400, in message

"OldSailor" wrote:


"Dennis Pogson" wrote

This seems to be the best, (and cheapest) solution. Get yourself a blonde
nympho who has younger eyes than yours (no disrespect to Rosalie!).

If she has good eyes, it might be hard to get her interested :)

My race partner is blonde and she does have younger eyes than I do,
but that doesn't do me a bit of good in the rain, in the middle of the
night, when I'm on watch and can't read the GPS well enough to know
how much I'm missing the island by.

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:42:55 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

Unless the screen shots are magnified, that's a pretty big screen
compared to the GPS 76. Does the colour help a lot in darkness?

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 11:04:00 GMT, in message

wrote:

There is nothing wrong with wearing bifocal glass. It is a natural aging
process. Most LCD are hard to read in direct sun light. Beside
navigational equipment digital cameras are the worst to read in direct sun
light.

I don't disagree, but the visibility through both wet glasses and wet
instruments in the rain is pretty dismal.

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 06:09:48 -0400, in message

Wayne.B wrote:

On Mon, 14 Aug 2006 19:27:00 -0400, Ryk
wrote:

I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

If you have space and the budget, the Furuno 10.4 inch color screens
are outstanding for both daytime and night time visibility. Next best
are their 7 inch screens.

Do they dim down enough for good night vision and still give a clear
picture? I find that a look at my notebook on the dimmest setting
still trashes my night vision.

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Mon, 14 Aug 2006 20:29:27 -0400, in message

"OldSailor" wrote:

Ryk,

I have same problem, except worse - I need reading glasses at home computer
and I can't read my iPaq display - I use the iPaq along with Fugawi as a
chart display - It has a zoom function that helps, but I am still juggling
sunglasses and reading glasses just at the worst moments.

What I am considering and will order tonight, seeing you jogged my memory,
is one of these:

http://www.gpscity.ca/item-ram-mount...er/rammag1.htm

We will see if it helps!

There are larger screen portable - Ultra-Mobiles. Need to wait for price to
come down!

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.... P=rdr0000276

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm not sure how well either would work in
the rain. Let me know about the magnifier.

Thanks,

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Ryk wrote:
On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 06:09:48 -0400, in message

Wayne.B wrote:


On Mon, 14 Aug 2006 19:27:00 -0400, Ryk
wrote:


I'm sure there are others on this route. I would like to hear from
anybody else with 50ish eyes who has moved on to a better display. How
much is enough? Should I just bite the bullet and buy a big screen? Or
should I keep a pair of half glasses at the helm? (which might not
help the rain issue)

If you have space and the budget, the Furuno 10.4 inch color screens
are outstanding for both daytime and night time visibility. Next best
are their 7 inch screens.


Do they dim down enough for good night vision and still give a clear
picture? I find that a look at my notebook on the dimmest setting
still trashes my night vision.

Ryk


I have extensive experience with the Furuno display, day and night
mounted outside on a flushdecked sailboat. We sailed in the rain hail
and snow. It is a great screen and terrific system. Just a couple
negatives, The C-Maps are not perfect and the track ball gums up
quickly. I always kept the remote handy (in a waterproof thingy) and
crossed checked tricky areas with the paper charts. For some reason the
geeks that digitized the maps for C-Maps frequently read rocky bottom
symbology as rocks awash and entered that into the digital charts. I
have many examples around the PNW.

Gary

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Ryk wrote:

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:42:55 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

Unless the screen shots are magnified, that's a pretty big screen
compared to the GPS 76. Does the colour help a lot in darkness?

Ryk

It's a regular laptop screen - I just measured this one and it is
8"x11" and I think the one pictured is about the same (can't remember
which one it was).

We have two old Garmin GPSs which have a very small screen and only
one of them has ATONs on it. They are both LCD.

Yes the color does help. Bob complains if I put the night colors on
because it washes the colors out.

http://p.vtourist.com/1492883-Bob_at...Indian_Key.jpg
This is Bob at the helm. You can see the back of the autopilot on the
left, and the GPS is clipped to the top of the binnacle.

http://p.vtourist.com/1493295-Bob_si...ional_Park.jpg
This is Bob sitting on the side of the cockpit. In this one you can
see the front of the GPS and the radar, and Bob has his back leaning
on the computer box (the computer is just dimly visible inside there.
The trackball is up on top of the box. The second GPS is attached to
the computer and the antenna for it is up the mast.

http://p.vtourist.com/1498854-Rosali...rina-Miami.jpg This
is the bow of the boat in Miamarina in Miami.


grandma Rosalie

S/V RosalieAnn, Leonardtown, MD
CSY 44 WO #156
http://home.mindspring.com/~gmbeasley/id1.html

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Fri, 18 Aug 2006 17:27:11 -0400, Ryk
wrote:

Do they dim down enough for good night vision and still give a clear
picture? I find that a look at my notebook on the dimmest setting
still trashes my night vision.

Yes, that is one of the great things about the Furuno screen. It is
far superior to a laptop screen in every respect. At night I need to
keep my laptop closed most of the time even though it is still
tracking.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Fri, 18 Aug 2006 22:52:35 GMT, Gary wrote:

For some reason the
geeks that digitized the maps for C-Maps frequently read rocky bottom
symbology as rocks awash and entered that into the digital charts. I
have many examples around the PNW.

I've seen that a few times also but I can always cross check against
the raster charts on the laptop when I need to. The Furuno can also
be ordered with Navionics charts instead of C-Map but I have not yet
seen a good analysis of the pros and cons between them. I agree that
the Furuno hardware, especially the screen, is first rate.

We used C-Map charts in the Bahamas that are identical to the Explorer
chart books, and they were very very good.

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

On Sat, 19 Aug 2006 00:45:59 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

Ryk wrote:

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:42:55 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

Unless the screen shots are magnified, that's a pretty big screen
compared to the GPS 76. Does the colour help a lot in darkness?

Ryk

It's a regular laptop screen - I just measured this one and it is
8"x11" and I think the one pictured is about the same (can't remember
which one it was).

We have two old Garmin GPSs which have a very small screen and only
one of them has ATONs on it. They are both LCD.

Yes the color does help. Bob complains if I put the night colors on
because it washes the colors out.

Thanks for the input. Looking at the pictures I think we are doing two
different kinds of sailing. I could not keep a computer in the
cockpit, even in a box.

Cheers,

Ryk

GPS / Chartplotter solution?
 

Ryk wrote:

On Sat, 19 Aug 2006 00:45:59 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

Ryk wrote:

On Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:42:55 GMT, in message

Rosalie B. wrote:

One thing that I do for my husband that you might do for yourself is
to put a route or previous track on the computer. The routing is a
big blue line, and it is pretty easy to whether the ship is on the
route or not. If it is in the ICW or someplace where we have been
before, and where the route twists and turns a lot, I put the previous
track (which I have saved) up on the computer.

Unless the screen shots are magnified, that's a pretty big screen
compared to the GPS 76. Does the colour help a lot in darkness?

Ryk

It's a regular laptop screen - I just measured this one and it is
8"x11" and I think the one pictured is about the same (can't remember
which one it was).

We have two old Garmin GPSs which have a very small screen and only
one of them has ATONs on it. They are both LCD.

Yes the color does help. Bob complains if I put the night colors on
because it washes the colors out.

Thanks for the input. Looking at the pictures I think we are doing two
different kinds of sailing. I could not keep a computer in the
cockpit, even in a box.

I'm sure we ARE doing two different kinds of sailing. I would not go
if I did not have a bimini. And Bob has to stay out of the sun
because he's already had one melanoma removed from his arm (just above
his watch).

I don't mind not having ice cubes and ice cream in the freezer - I
will drink warm water or other drinks without ice cubes (per the other
refrigeration thread). I enjoy traveling by boat. But I won't be
out in the sun.

The bimini makes the instrument reading a whole lot better too. Most
of the time it shields the screens from the direct sun and the
computer box helps too.

FWIW, before we had the computer box, we strapped the computer to the
nav table in the aft cabin where we could see it from the helm by
looking over the right shoulder and down the companionway. Although
we do have the box, and have had the computer in it through some
pretty heavy rainstorms, we don't normally have it in the cockpit if
we anticipate really bad weather.